Image provided by: University of Oregon Libraries; Eugene, OR
About The daily Astorian. (Astoria, Or.) 1961-current | View Entire Issue (April 15, 2021)
A4 THE ASTORIAN • THuRSdAy, ApRIl 15, 2021 OPINION editor@dailyastorian.com KARI BORGEN publisher DERRICK DePLEDGE Editor Founded in 1873 SHANNON ARLINT Circulation Manager JOHN D. BRUIJN production Manager CARL EARL Systems Manager OUR VIEW Making a muddle of saving salmon L ocal experts connected in various ways with salmon fishing and conservation must be ready to blow a gasket over the Washington Legislature’s latest clumsy efforts to “help.” In legislators’ defense, saving salmon is a supremely messy busi- ness, with more murky crosscur- rents and furious undertows than a dangerous outer coast beach. Pulled this way and that by those who gen- uinely know what they’re talking about and many others who don’t know a chum from a Chinook, poli- cymakers find themselves in a hard- to-win situation. Intentional confusion is added by outsiders whose only interest is in grabbing salmon for themselves or using the issue merely as a means to generate financial donations from well-wishing urbanites. And as if all that wasn’t enough, salmon management is also bound up with the need to help Washing- ton’s endangered resident orcas, and with the obligation to coordi- nate some policies with Oregon and Canada. Although this may sound about as fun as getting lost in an undersea kelp forest, the legislative and reg- ulatory issues of immediate local concern aren’t that complicated. For one, a plan is rattling around to ramp up the use of pound nets to commercially harvest hatchery-bred salmon. Banned about 90 years ago, this technique — otherwise known as fish traps — in theory catches migrating salmon without harm. The catch can then be sorted, with nonhatchery fish released to con- tinue upstream. Although this has obvious appeal, it comes with a variety of technical and pragmatic obsta- cles. The Wild Fish Conservancy has been experimenting with a pound net to catch tule fall Chinook and fin-clipped coho in the Cath- lamet area. A proposal now on the Cassandra Profita/Oregon Public Broadcasting An experimental fish trap on the lower Columbia River has repurposed an old fishing method in search of a more sustainable way to catch salmon. It is, however, a long way from proving the viability of the concept. table would advance this trial fish- ery to the next stage. This would be premature. Astoria-based nonprofit Salmon For All — embedded in gill and tangle net technology — can’t be considered objective, but certainly possesses deep and direct experi- ence in commercial salmon fishing. The nonprofit makes convincing arguments: “Our research shows that the cap- ital investment needed to set up a pound net operation ranges from $156,000 to $258,000. Annual gross income produced by the current experimental gear from 2018-2020 averaged $24,146.92, according to the Washington Department of Fish and Wildlife,” Jim Wells, the pres- ident of Salmon For All, said in a February letter. “We do not think that current numbers and lack of profitability or even potential profit- ability, qualifies the trap as a ‘com- mercial’ fishery or ‘emerging com- mercial fishery’ as yet.” Advancing to a next regulatory stage with modern pound nets risks splitting a fishery with thin profit margins into yet smaller slices, while undercutting private invest- ment in the proven technology of tangle nets. These nets provide for live capture of salmon, achieving the goal of letting nonhatchery fish get on with their business. The Washington Senate has made a muddle of a separate proposal to buy down the number of com- mercial fishing licenses on Wash- ington’s southern estuaries and the Columbia River. Such licenses are considered private property and in some cases have been owned by the same family for generations. Some aren’t actively used, but represent additional potential harvest pressure on salmon. An advisory committee con- vened by Washington Department of Fish and Wildlife recommended buying and eliminating 100 Colum- bia River/Willapa Bay and Colum- bia River/Grays Harbor licenses at a cost of $10,000 each. Senate Democrats, who are oth- erwise splashing money around with enthusiasm, fiddled with this plan in such a way as to drastically reduce compensation, while at the same time forcing unpaid surren- der of some licenses. This is neither fair nor wise, and risks scuttling an otherwise smart effort to winnow the fishing fleet down to a profitable and sustainable size. This initiative would enhance the coastal econ- omy while improving income pros- pects for the Department of Fish and Wildlife. It remains an imponderable polit- ical mystery why a majority of 19th Legislative District voters chose to unseat state Sen. Dean Takko and state Rep. Brian Blake, expe- rienced leaders who would have guided these issues to a correct res- olution. However, we hope legis- lators and the Department of Fish and Wildlife will listen to the peo- ple most affected by these matters. The license buyback should be fully funded and the concept of bringing back pound nets should be held in abeyance, pending much additional study and consideration. LETTERS TO THE EDITOR Kudos udos to Clatsop County and vol- unteers in the administration and organization for the COVID-19 vac- cines. So much work, and so much better than what Oregon and Gov. Kate Brown accomplished. I was disappointed that the state of Oregon was not nearly as prepared as the Clatsop County people. The Clatsop County group was outstanding. MERILEE LAURENS Seaside K Reality he reality is that here in Clatsop County we live in earthquake and tsu- nami country. Feel the ground shake? Time to get to high ground — and fast. We likely will only have 15 to 20 minutes to get there. With trees and power lines down, and bridges out, we can’t count on being able to drive to high ground; we’ll likely have to get there on foot. I live in a tsunami inundation zone in Gearhart. It has been breezily suggested by Stewart Schultz that the only option for survival is to get to the 100-foot elevation of the foothills at a distance to the east of us. There is no way most of us in Gearhart can walk to the foothills in time. And in trying, we do not want to get stuck in the low-lying area in between with a tsunami on the way. We just don’t have time. It is unhelpful and misguided to ignore the realities facing most of our coastal residents. For our survival, the best high ground is the high ground we can actually get to in time. Want to learn more? Check out the resources on the county’s website at bit. ly/3fYbq5Y. Practice your evacuation plan and prepare. Your life may depend on it. BEBE MICHEL Gearhart T Prove it he recent tempest in a teapot at the Sunset Empire Park and Recreation District is interesting. To hear these folks talk, the old Broadway Middle School property, which SEPRD recently pur- chased from Seaside School District No. 10, is a toxic dump site of asbestos and black mold. Reading their vitriolic letters to the edi- tor, I’m left wondering, where was their hue and cry over this issue when our chil- dren were in those buildings? Why were T they silent about this threat all these years? Why is it now suddenly a big concern to them? Is the problem really that bad, or is this all just hyperbole? It also raises the question of why didn’t the Seaside school board gift the middle school property to SEPRD, another taxing district serving the public, like they did the Gearhart Elementary School property? Supposedly a big part of their reasoning for selling the Gearhart property to a pri- vate concern for less than a fifth of its true base value was worries about asbestos and mold. That whole affair fails to pass the smell test. District taxpayers were robbed and the school board was wholly complicit in the theft. Especially when you consider the subsequent Broadway Middle School sale. If either of these sites are as dangerous as they are being made out, someone needs to prove it. My children went to both these schools. I want answers. And, quite hon- estly, the members of both boards should have their feet put to the fire to justify their actions. BILL GRAFFIUS Gearhart